Not An Option
by MayFairy
Summary: Insight into the Doctor's thoughts as he watches Romana get tortured by the Shadow. Because as he sees her in pain, he realises just how much she means to him, and that despite the whole universe being at stake, losing her is NOT an option. Four/RomanaI


**Here's the other one-shot! Angsty, but shippy, and above all, completely canon! Ah, the shippiness of Doctor/Romana. :)**

**This fic basically gives some insight into the scene in 'The Armageddon Factor : Part Five' where the Doctor has to watch Romana get tortured. Because obviously, he is NOT okay with it. **

**Enjoy!**

**p.s. This scene also shows how Romana is so much more impressive than Rose. Rose never once got tortured, and even if she had, she would never have been willing to suffer more. But Romana is so strong that she was completely fine with sacrificing herself. And that's why we love her. :)**

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><p>The Doctor walked into the lair of the Shadow, where the controlled Astra stood on the sidelines with a blank expression, and the Shadow sat triumphantly on his rock in the centre of the room made of black rock and stone.<p>

But it was the Time Lady in the white dress being held captive that caught his attention. She was inside a chamber identical to the one that the Shadow had held him in on Zeos, and he knew the terrible pain that the torture instruments could cause, having experienced it himself.

Had she been put through the same agony? She certain looked worse for the wear, her breathing was ragged and she was clinging to the inside of the chamber with more force than she should have needed. The thought of her being tortured filled him with horror. But before he could worry about her too much, the Shadow was addressing him.

"The Key to Time, Doctor," The Shadow reminded him menacingly. The Doctor did not give him the pleasure of a response, merely continued to watch Romana. She met his eye briefly, and he saw the spark of defiance in them, but also a great wariness. "Then, you can watch your assistant suffer…" His enemy offered.

"I refuse to negotiate under an atmosphere of threat," The Doctor replied firmly, an edge in his tone. His gaze flicked back to Romana, and he saw her cringe and recoil her body as harmful energy surged through it, pain shooting through every vein in her body as the Shadow turned on the chamber's instruments.

It was a horror to watch for the Doctor. He had realised a long time that he had developed some kind of deeper feelings for the young Time Lady, but they had never been so strong and deeply protective as they were in this second. To see her in such pain, he couldn't bear it, not even for two seconds. He found himself immediately protesting.

"No, no, stop, stop!" The energy immediately stopped, and Romana leaned against the confinement bars of the chamber, earnestly meeting his eyes.

"Doctor, no!" She argued despite the obvious fatigue on her face, "Don't give in to him, it doesn't matter what happens to me!"

"Well of course it matters!" The Doctor retorted, horrified at the very thought. How could she think that her life was so unimportant? Granted, they were trying to save the entire universe, but that was no reason to throw her life away, especially when at this magnitude of attack there was a chance that no regeneration would occur.

He tried to imagine not having her around…despite not having travelled with her for as long as he had some other companions, he found the idea too strange. What would he do if she weren't telling him off? Where would they go if not to the place of the next Segment, or a place where he could impress her, just because he could?

His hearts panged at the thought of losing her, and it became clear in an instant that losing her was not an option. There _had _to be another way.

And so began the deadly negotiations. But it was worth it. Worth it to save Romana.

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><p><strong>Ah, the shippiness of canon... :D<strong>

**Just had to write this...plus, the more Romana fics out there, the better, right? Please drop in a review and let me know what you thought! **

**-MayFairy :)**


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